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Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 12:27 pm
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I totally agree with BigJay's first post on this subject.

I had a boss years ago who always would say, "People love to be ripped off." One example of many: He said, take two IDENTICAL, brand new, Stratocasters (note that this was during the CBS era). Offer one of them for sale at $400 cheaper than the other and most will go for the more expensive one even after having played both. His premise was that to most buyers, the $400 more one MUST be better and, there MUST be something wrong with the less expensive one. He proved such things to me time and time again. YMMV.

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Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 1:04 pm
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[quote="BigJay"]Ceri...you astound me with your data!!!!!


This is a common and frequently posted topic. There's a great deal of history in the Forums on it. As well, neck profiles, finger board materials and the like, often resurface.

Niki anc Ceri, together make a formidable team. Fortunately their activities are legitimate and we are the beneficiaries of their gifts.

You certainly seem to hold up your end as well :wink:

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Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 1:21 pm
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zzdoc wrote:
Niki anc Ceri, together make a formidable team. Fortunately their activities are legitimate and we are the beneficiaries of their gifts.


Well, one moment I am posting a (thankfully very rare) short tempered remark on one thread, the next I find myself being complimented - quite undeservedly - on another!

The credit on that charming morsel of data belongs entirely to Niki. My only achievement was to more or less remember what I'd been told.

Thank you, Doc: a welcome lift to the proceedings.

Cheers - C


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Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 1:25 pm
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I'm flattered by both of you. :oops:

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Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 2:04 pm
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[quote="BigJay"]ZZDoc....Not too sure you were aiming at me when you said "you hold up your own".

Simply giving the nod to your technical contribution sans the need for the gauntlet at the closure. :wink:

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Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 3:15 pm
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I believe that the main monetary differences between the MIM and the MIA are not focused the most in the manufacturing of the bodies... but the wiring, pickups, hardware, neck including frets, finish, quality, luxury stuff and features and the rest..... Am I right? I would say 10% of the 1000 bucks goes to the pieces of wood that become the body lol and 90% goes to everything else ...well maybe a little more :D


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Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 3:52 pm
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[quote="BigJay"]

As with autos....the sum of the parts is often worth more than the guitar. There are 'chop shops' which purchase intact instruments and cobble them for parts.

Remember that costs of production are less south of the border.

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Post subject: Re: strat bodys?
Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 4:05 pm
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angelripper1 wrote:
Whats the difference between an american strat body and a cheap squire strat body?The ones im looking at are both alder and the specs seem to be the same.


I'm not going to get as technical or detailed as some of the other posts here (although I must admit that I'm quite impressed with BigJay's rather lengthy post...rivals a few of my own! LOL!). What I will say is that if both bodies are Alder, chances are you'll notice more difference in sound from your choice of pickups than you would with one body vs. the other. While I'm sure there are those who would disagree and certainly those who as other's have said will stomp their foot and say the American body is better, when it comes to an electric guitar it's simply been my experience that the wood the body is made out of is typically one of the lesser attributes of it's tone. I've got guitars made from alder, poplar, basswood and even one made from red oak...once you add the e-tronics, the "tone wood" becomes quite subjective. I've even got an old New Jersey Kramer that actually has a laminate body (aka plywood...albeit good plywood, LOL!) but she's loaded with a set of vintage DiMazio humbuckers and I replaced the FR trem with a Kahler and that guitar simply screams.

An acoustic guitar is certainly a different matter...all of the sound comes from the wood. Even there though if you mic that guitar into an amp, the sound is going to change depending on what mic you use, what amp you use, how you have the mic placed, etc.. Add an acoustic pickup and the sound changes entirely. This is the issue with electric guitars...very few folks sit there and play them "au natural". As such the pickups and the hardware (such as the bridge and the trem block) are going to have a much greater impact on how any given electric guitar sounds compared with the wood or even the finish and then when you add things like an amp, efex pedals etc....while I'm sure that some people think they can hear a difference, chances are it's mostly in their head.

The one last thing I will add is that depending on which Squire body you are looking at, there can be a slight difference in size and such. My new Squire Bullet has a somewhat thinner body than either my Squire Standard or my MIM Standard. Also, the pick guard on the Bullet is a bit different from either of the Standards..slightly different hole placement for the screws and she seems to require "mini" pots for the volume and tone controls. Both Stardards however seem to be identical in size and all of the parts have been fully inter-changable (barring the bridge as the Squire Standard has a two point trem and the MIM has a 6 point).

Honestly, if your looking to build a project guitar and both bodies are alder and as you say the specs appear to be the same, I'd simply go with the less expensive body and put the difference into some really great pickups. Even if you use all American parts, the instrument is never going to be worth as much as an actual Fender made Am Std...simply because you made it yourself, so just build your self a beauty and don't sweat the rest!

Just my $.02 worth,
Jim


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Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 4:09 pm
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Never mind parts costing more, how do you put a cost on the experience of the workers? It would be nice to know how many guitars each plant knock out each day. The popular speculation is that mexico turns out 100,000 per year based on the serial no' sequencing. Thats 297 per day allowing for four weeks closure for holidays. Even to turn out half that amount would be a enourmous task.

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Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 4:12 pm
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The :?: of what is the difference between Squier bodies and other Strats depends on which Squier the Affinity and the Bullet has a thinner body then the Squier Standard and the Vibe series so you have to compare them to the appropriate model when talking proportions.

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